Before He Cheats
by lil-miss-chocolate
Summary: A misunderstanding leads to several broken hearts. Featuring Kurt, Blaine and Dave Karofsky.


_Part 1 – Perpetration_

Dance music pounded through Santana's house, making Kurt's head throb as he sat giggling on the couch with Rachel. The party was in full swing and everyone was more than a little tipsy. Everyone, that is, bar Blaine and Tina, who were the group's designated drivers. Kurt's recently returned Lincoln Navigator was sitting safely on the driveway at home – he and Finn were driven to the party by Blaine in his little Chevy.

Dave was there, in his role as Santana's boyfriend. Mercedes and Rachel had been a bit twitchy about it at first, but Kurt hadn't seemed to mind his former bully's presence, so they had let it go with the determination that they would not leave Kurt's side at any time.

Pleased as Kurt was at his friends' care for him, they were beginning to get on his nerves. He trusted Dave now. At least, he trusted that the bigger boy wouldn't start using him as a punching bag if he felt like it, and having his fierce girlfriends bodyguard him all night was starting to get irritating.

Still, he laughed along with Rachel at Puck, Lauren and Sam's advanced states of inebriation as they twirled, span and fell on each other in approximate time with the music. Mercedes returned to the couch with more drinks for the three of them, and happily joined in with watching her boyfriend make a complete fool of himself.

All in all, it was a good party. Everyone was having fun.

Everyone, it seemed, except Santana herself. She was watching Brittany drunkenly attempting to jive with Mike with a look that Kurt could only describe as jealousy. He watched her curiously for a moment, and suddenly everything clicked into place.

He had known that her and Dave's relationship was a sham, of course. That much was obvious. But what he hadn't figured out was why they had kept it up after prom was over.

Now, though, looking at the expression on Santana's face as she watched Brittany, laughing, fall into Mike's arms, he realised why. Santana wasn't Dave's beard – he was hers. Well, they were each other's, really.

The entire club knew that Santana had a soft spot for Brittany – their performance of Landslide had cemented what everyone had suspected. But none of them had realised, Kurt suspected, that Santana was completely, one hundred percent, head over heels in love with the beautiful blonde.

Glancing back across the room, he happened to lock eyes with Quinn, who was doing the same as him – taking a break, sitting back and watching her friends have fun. Judging by her expression, he was not the only one who had just figured out the tangled web that was Santana's love life.

Mercedes dragged his attention back by catching his arm, pointing at Sam and laughing hysterically. The blonde boy had somehow acquired both Lauren and Puck's glasses (yes, Noah Puckerman wore nerd glasses at the weekends. Who knew?) and was attempting to make the two pairs of spectacles make out, in imitation of their owners.

Kurt laughed along with her, but his heart wasn't really in it. He needed to get away and think; find some peace and quiet to process the evening's revelation.

While Mercedes and Rachel were distracted by Sam's impromptu puppet show, he darted away, climbing the stairs to the bathroom. He didn't notice Dave's watching him go, or the fact that the bigger boy followed him from the room.

Kurt went into the bathroom, locking the door and went to sit on the edge of the tub, resting his head in his hands. His head was clearer away from the pounding beat, but his thought process was still slow and muggy from the strangely blue punch he had been drinking all night.

Gradually, Kurt managed to piece it all together – the little moments where Santana had defended Brittany, had comforted and consoled her; they took on a different light with his new perspective.

_But_, Kurt thought, _it's obviously that Brittany loves her as well. And she's not with Artie any more… what's stopping them from being together?_ Even as he thought it, he realised that there were many things that stopped two people in love from being together. Everything from other people's expectations to one person just not loving the other in quite the right way, or just not quite enough, affected a relationship.

After several minutes of silent ponderment, there came a knock from the door. Kurt jumped up.

"What? Who is it? I'll just be minute."

He went to the sink and washed his hands, splashing some of the cold water onto his face to try and revive himself as Dave's voice came through the door.

"Kurt? Are you okay? You're not… you're not being sick or some shit, are you? Do you want me to get Mercedes?"

"No!" Kurt called back, hurriedly. "No, don't get Mercedes. I'm fine," he called as he dried his hands and face, moving to the door. He opened the door onto the landing and stepped out. Dave was standing near the door with a worried expression.

Unbeknownst to either of them, Blaine had seen them both leave. Worried that Dave might drunkenly try to hurt Kurt, he had sneaked quietly up the stairs, trying to find the two boys in case Dave tried to injure Blaine's boyfriend. He started to search the upper floor of the house – Santana might claim to come from the wrong side of the tracks, but the size of her house indicated otherwise.

Dave, very much intoxicated, carefully took hold of Kurt by the shoulders and tried to look into his eyes, concerned. "Are you sure you're okay? I don't want you to be sick. I don't want you to be unhappy. That would be so bad, 'cos I made you so unhappy before, and you're such a _good_ person…" His voice slurred as he spoke.

Kurt patted the tall boy reassuringly on the shoulder. "I'm fine, Dave. I'm honestly fine. I just needed some time alone, you know?"

"Are you sure? 'Cos I hurt you before so I know how much it sucks if you think you made someone feel bad, and I don't want Santana to feel bad if you were sick at her party."

"Really, Dave, I'm not sick," Kurt replied, looking into Dave's eyes.

Dave smiled. "That's good. I don't want you to be sick. 'Cos when you're hurting, it hurts me, you know? 'Cos I love you so much and it makes me so sad when you're sad."

Kurt took a sharp breath. "You… what?"

"I love you so much, so so much. And it hurts so bad when I see you with _Blaine_." The jock spat out the word, his smile being replaced by an ugly frown. "'Cos you smile at him and you never smile at me, and he loves you and I love you."

Tears began to fall down the tall teen's face as he continued, "And I hate that I was so stupid and hurt you and let him get you… 'cos I shouldn't have bullied you and you wouldn't have gone and you wouldn't be so _fucking_ scared of me."

Dave was crying in earnest now, full of regret for the chance he had passed up.

"If I'd never done that you never would have gone to that school and got a boyfriend and I just… I love you so damn much, Kurt, and you hated me, and now you don't hate me, but you smile so much when you see him… and you don't smile when you see me."

Salty tears flooding his cheeks, Dave leaned slowly forward, his hands still on Kurt's shoulders, and kissed him gently on the cheek.

Kurt made no move to pull away, simply rubbing his hand up and down Dave's arm in a vain attempt to comfort the crying boy. Blaine, who was quietly walking along the hall around the corner, was just near enough now to hear Kurt's next words.

"Dave, oh, Dave," Kurt said, pitying the troubled teen with all his heart. "I know… I get it… I know how much it hurts."

"I just love you so fucking much, Kurt," Dave said, his pain clearly evident in his eyes. "And I see you with him all the time, and it hurts so bad, you know? I love you… I love you."

He leaned forward again to place a kiss on Kurt's other cheek.

At the sound of the kiss, Blaine peeped immediately around the corner. Kurt's face was upturned to Dave's, tears of his own beginning to fall.

"I love you," Dave muttered again, kissing away each of Kurt's tears as they trickled down his cheeks.

Each kiss was punctuated by another statement of love, with Kurt's only response being, "I know, Dave… I know…" as he stroked the burly boy's arm.

Blaine watched the exchange, his stomach clenching as he watched the jock repeatedly kiss his boyfriend. His hands curled into fists and a wrenched expression fixed itself onto his face. He could hardly stand to watch.

"I'm so so sorry, Kurt," Dave muttered before he moved slightly, and placed the next kiss onto Kurt's lips.

Blaine could bear it no longer. He couldn't stand there and watch his boyfriend kiss another boy. A boy who had terrified the heart and soul out of him mere months ago. He turned and fled down the back stairs, not caring who saw him, running to his car and driving away into the night, needing to get away from the horrible feeling of hurt and betrayal.

Back on the Lopez's landing, Kurt froze. There were lips on his. Lips that weren't Blaine's. Lips that shouldn't be there. He twisted out of Dave's gentle grip on his upper arms and backed against the wall with a shocked expression.

"You can't _kiss_ me, Dave!" he gasped out, before turning and fleeing the landing. He dashed back to the front stairs, stumbling slightly as he scrubbed his face dry. He paused at the foot of the staircase, taking a deep breath and making sure that each item of his attire was in its proper place.

He recovered himself, and, with another breath, slipped back into the room where all his friends were partying. Mercedes and Rachel immediately attached themselves to his side like limpets, flooding him with questions about where he had been. He glanced around the room, trying to locate his boyfriend. He needed Blaine's comforting, reassuring arms right now.

Kurt told them that he had just been to the bathroom, and the girls, relieved, immediately began detailing all of the hilarious antics of the glee club members in his absence (which included Brittany attempting body shots off Finn, Puck hoisting Rachel onto his shoulder and spinning her round and round, and Mike's attempt to break dance while intoxicated).

It was several minutes before Kurt found an opportunity to speak, let alone ask after the whereabouts of his boyfriend. Rachel immediately suggested a search party (apparently this had been her first suggestion after Kurt's disappearance as well, but Tina had talked her out of it).  
>Kurt, for once in his life, agreed with her. Not only had his boyfriend been missing for at least fifteen minutes in a large house that he didn't know, but Blaine was his and Finn's lift home that night, and Kurt did <em>not<em> want to have to wake his father and stepmother at one thirty in the morning.

The group spread out in pairs to search the house, but Kurt and Rachel had only made it to the kitchen when they were hailed by Mercedes and Tina from the yard. Blaine's car was gone, and Kurt and his brother had no way to get home.

Kurt felt like the bottom had fallen out of his stomach. Not only had his boyfriend left, vanished, when he really needed his comforting presence, but he would now have to stay the night and call his dad for a lift in the morning, and suffer the disapproving and disappointed looks his father was sure to give him.

The party atmosphere was ruined by Blaine's sudden disappearance – Kurt was close to tears, Finn was angry, Mercedes and Rachel were indignant, and Santana was still glaring daggers at anyone who came within a foot of Brittany.

Dave, upstairs, heard the ruckus and people's angry exclamations. He couldn't go down and face the boy, not now. The lonely jock made his way to Santana's room, curled up in her bed, and tried not to cry as he considered just how badly he had messed up his life over the previous year.

Three hours later, Santana slipped into the bed (Finn and Kurt were asleep on couches downstairs). As she tried to sleep, she thought of Brittany, longing to have the courage to stand up and claim her girl before the entire school.

_Part 2 – Retaliation_

By the time Monday morning rolled around (the party had been on the Saturday night), Kurt's feelings towards Blaine had changed from hurt and confused to angry and worried.

It was one thing to drive off without your boyfriend (and his stepbrother), leaving him to be collected in the morning by his annoyed parents.  
>It was quite another to then ignore five separate phone calls from said boyfriend, two from your boyfriend's equally stranded brother, one from your boyfriend's father (angrily demanding an explanation) and one from his step-mother (asking if everything was alright, and enquiring if something bad had happened to cause the sudden departure).<p>

Kurt arrived at school in a very bad mood indeed; most of New Directions recognised the signs of an angry Kurt well enough to stay out of his way.

Of course, Rachel being Rachel, she recognised all of the signs and proceeded to flat out ignore them, linking her arm with Kurt's as they both left homeroom, chattering away about her plans for Glee club to perform a selection of songs from Wicked until they reached the history classroom.

Normally, Kurt would have enjoyed a conversation about his favourite Broadway show, but right now, all he cared about was getting some sort of explanation from his boyfriend – he employed Finn's method of 'If I ignore her long enough, maybe she'll go away' and silently allowed himself to be dragged through the halls. He continued to check his phone under his desk throughout first period.

Rachel, not used to Kurt's completely ignoring her, had nearly run out of conversation by the time they were in English class, the last lesson before lunch break. Luckily for her, Kurt's phone buzzed on his knee ten minutes before the bell went for lunch.

A broad smile spread over Kurt's face as he read the text: Meet me in the yard at 12.00. At least face to face he would be able to find out what had caused Blaine to depart so hastily, leaving his boyfriend behind to worry about Karofsky's actions alone.

After class, he rushed out to the yard, accompanied by Rachel, Mercedes and Brittany, all of whom were in his English group (though how Brittany managed to get into the top English class, he had no idea).

He waited with his girls near the top of the concrete bleachers, one eye on the clock, the other roving around the yard, keeping an eye open for Blaine.

Sure enough, at twelve o'clock precisely, a blazered boy appeared at the top of the concrete steps.

Kurt greeted his boyfriend with a joyous wave. "Blaine! Thank God! I was worried! But where did you go on Saturday?" He was torn between relief at seeing his boyfriend again, and irritation at his silence over the past day and half.

Blaine stood atop the concrete structure, looking down to where Kurt was standing two levels down. He had a serious expression on his face, and he didn't respond to Kurt's open arms.

"Kurt, what happened at the party was… unacceptable."

Mercedes barged in at this point with, "Hell yes, it was! You were Kurt and Finn's designated driver and you just dumped 'em by the kerb!"  
>Blaine gave her a quelling look and continued. "What I saw after I followed you upstairs… it made me angry. So angry I can't even say. So I've got some of the guys here to help me out with trying to get my point across."<p>

The rest of the Warblers appeared, gathering on either side of Blaine like an impending army. They looked down at Kurt and his friends with looks varying between disgust and disappointment as they started the backing vocals of a song that Kurt didn't recognise.

Puck and Sam, being country fans, identified if from the far side of the yard. They made their way over, very much confused as to why Blaine would be singing Carrie Underwood's song for vengeful, wronged women everywhere.

Blaine started to sing the lead solo, his gaze never leaving Kurt's bewildered face.

"Right now, he's probably slow dancing  
>With a bleached blonde tramp<br>And she's probably getting thirsty.  
>Right now, he's probably buying her<br>Some fruity little drink  
>'Cos she can't shoot a whiskey."<p>

The surrounding students stopped in their chatter to look at yet another impromptu musical performance in their lunch break. Members of Glee club who weren't already standing next to Kurt wended their way through the other kids to stand with the rest of the club, all confused as to why this song didn't appear to be any kind of an apology.

"Right now, he's probably up behind her  
>With a pool stick showing her<br>How to shoot a combo.  
>And he don't know…"<p>

Kurt's bafflement only grew as his boyfriend reached the end of the first verse. He had no idea whether he was supposed to be the guy or girl in this song – was he guy getting lucky or the bleached blonde tramp? That was the problem with a lot of the songs Blaine sang – all too frequently at least one of the pair was identified as a girl.

"I dug my key into the side  
>Of his pretty little souped up four wheel drive.<br>I carved my name into his leather seats."

Finn, Puck, Lauren, Sam and Mike formed an intimidating line alongside Kurt as they watched his expression change from merely confused to utterly perplexed, desperately racking his brains for some reason for his boyfriend's behaviour.

"I took a Louisville slugger to both headlights,  
>Slashed a hole in all four tyres;<br>Maybe next time he'll think before he cheats."

His mystification turned to rage, however, when the Warblers parted to reveal Kurt's car – his beautiful, shiny, perfect Lincoln Navigator… trashed beyond all recognition. The windows broken, the lights smashed, the paintwork scratched – and Kurt could see flaps of leather draped out of the window from the seats of the car. It appeared that the security in McKinley's parking lot was just as bad as Carmel High's.  
>With a look of smug satisfaction now on his face, Blaine continued to sing, missing out the second verse and moving straight on to the bridge. The girls (and Artie) had to grab hold of the boys (and Lauren) to stop them from attempting to beat the Warblers' faces in.<p>

"I might've saved a little trouble for the next girl,  
>'Cos the next time that he cheats…<br>Oh, you know it won't be on me.  
>No, not on me."<p>

Kurt's expression was black. He stood with his arms folded and wearing a look that would daunt even the most brazen of offenders.

"'Cos I dug my key into the side  
>Of his pretty little souped up four wheel drive.<br>I carved my name into his leather seats.  
>I took a Louisville slugger to both headlights<br>Slashed a hole in all four tyres;  
>Maybe next time he'll think before he cheats.<br>Oh, maybe next time he'll think before he cheats.  
>Oh, before he cheats.<br>Oh…"

As the song ended, the Warblers all had serious expressions on their faces, though more than a few also looked oddly satisfied, as though justice had been done and some offence atoned for.

Kurt marched furiously up to his supposed boyfriend, determined to not let the boys of New Directions fight this battle for him, as they were all clearly yearning to do.

"What the hell are you doing, Blaine? What the fuck has gotten into you?"

The surrounding Glee club members gasped aloud. They had never heard Kurt swear before.

"Is this what you ditched me at the party to go and do? To go and get Blaine and the Pips together do a shoddy Carrie Underwood do-over? To trash my car like a disgruntled child?" Kurt's anger died down to simple and utter bewilderment. "I just… I don't understand why you did this. What makes you think I would ever cheat on you? What the hell makes you think I _did_?"

"I saw you last night!" Blaine yelled back, angrily, pointing over at Dave, who was standing over by the steps. "You and him, you and Karofsky!"

The entire crowd of gathered students gasped. Watching a domestic evolve between the school's only known gay couple was entertainment enough – for it to include the apparent outing of the butchest jock in school was the icing on the cake.

Kurt was silent for a moment in sheer fury. He spat out his next words. "I don't know what you think you saw, Blaine Warbler, but I'm telling you right now that nothing happened between me and Dave that was any of your concern. Apologise to him, _now_."

Unable to stand the pressure of the ogling of the student body, Dave turned and vanished into the building.

Blaine was shaking his head at him. "How could you do this to me, Kurt? After all that he did you? After he stole your fir-"

Kurt slammed his hand over Blaine's mouth, grabbed his arm, and twisted it into a painful lock. He pulled him in the direction of the building, making for the choir room.

"We are going to have a chat in private, Blaine, and then I want you out of my life."

All of New Directions and the Warblers made moves to follow the pair. Kurt's head snapped round and he called back to them, "This is going to be a _private_ conversation."

The McKinley students knew better than to piss off an already irate Kurt. New Directions formed a barrier, preventing the Warblers from going to support their captain. All of New Directions, that is, except for Finn, who resolutely followed Kurt and Blaine.  
>"Finn, stay with the others," Kurt yelled back, not bothering to turn back around.<p>

"Nuh-uh, dude," the towering teen said, following him. "You're my brother and I'm not letting you out of my sight with that piece of shit."  
>Blaine looked hurt at Finn's judgement of him. He had thought that they were friends, tentatively so, at least. Kurt rolled his eyes at Blaine's naïveté – given his expression, he honestly appeared to think that Finn had no reason to be angry with him.<p>

Kurt slowed slightly as he dragged Blaine through the halls. He spoke over his shoulder as they made their way to the choir room. "Finn, much as I appreciate what you're trying to do, I assure you, you don't want to be here for this conversation. You can wait outside if you promise not to listen."

Finn nodded and went to stand sentry outside the room. Rachel, Mercedes, Tina, Lauren and Puck sneaked around the corner of the corridor as Kurt hauled Blaine inside the choir room and slammed the door behind him.

_Part 3 – Confrontation_

Kurt stormed into the choir room, immediately launching into an angry tirade:

"How the _hell_ could you do that to Dave? You know damn well how scary it is to come out, and trying to force someone out like that is the lowest of the low. I can't believe you did that. I thought you were better than that, Blaine, no matter what you thought I'd been doing with him."

"I saw you two making out in the hall last night! You were right by the bathroom, you were being all lovey and saying his name, and you let him kiss you! He kissed you full on the lips, Kurt! Only I'm allowed to do that, I'm your boyfriend!"

"And if you'd waited ten seconds more before running off in a hissy fit, you'd have seen me push him away again! He was drunk and he made a mistake. The only thing I did wrong was not realise in time what he was about to do. And that does not excuse what you did! Shouting in front of the entire student body that he kissed me? _Outing_ him! You know how hard it is to be openly gay in this school, Blaine! Forcing him to face something like that? Even after what he did to me, that's unforgivable, Blaine!"

"I don't care about fucking Karofsky!" Blaine yelled, pausing for a fraction of a second over the 'f' of the expletive as well spoken people always do before they swear.

"You let him kiss you, Kurt! After he forced himself on you before, you pick _him_ to cheat on me with?"

"You're not listening, Blaine! I didn't cheat. He kissed me, and I just didn't push him away fast enough because I was drunk and my reactions were shot! I never wanted him to kiss me! I ran away from him!"

"You let him kiss you, Kurt. He kissed your face about six times before he went for your lips. You just stood there and let him!"

"On the cheek, Blaine! My _grandmother_ kisses me on the cheek! You never kicked up a fuss about that!"

"Don't mess around, Kurt. You know how much this hurt me."

The sarcastic bite to Kurt's voice was unmistakeable as he replied, "Well, obviously, or my car would still be intact!"

"Kurt!"

"What do you want me to say, Blaine? 'I'm sorry you jumped to conclusions'? 'I'm sorry I didn't realise sooner what a dickhead you can be'?"  
>Blaine just stood there with a dazed look on his face, his fury gone, only sadness remaining. "He… he was <em>kissing<em> you, Kurt. After everything he did… he was kissing you. And you let him."

"Because he's hurting, Blaine. And I was drunk. I wasn't thinking straight. If I'd been sober, I probably wouldn't have let him. If he'd been sober, he wouldn't have tried. But, Blaine, me letting him kiss me on the cheek was not wrong. If you were watching so avidly, you should have seen me run away when he went for my lips."

"I couldn't watch any more, Kurt! I saw him kissing you, his lips were all over your face, those same lips that stole your first kiss. When you let him kiss your lips… I couldn't watch. It made me sick to my stomach, it hurt so much Kurt."

Kurt's expression softened slightly, and he spoke more calmly. "I understand that, Blaine. I guess would've been hurt if I'd seen someone do that to you. But… the fact that you thought I was cheating… that's not even what I'm angry about any more. I mean, not really.

"Blaine, you thought I cheated because you thought you saw something. That's fair enough. It was late and kind of dark. But then, instead of challenging _me_ about it, right there and then, you got together all your friends to smash up my car and then try to humiliate me in front of my school.

"And then to try to out Dave, in front of everyone, and not even care? I tried to cover for it, but I don't know if it'll work. You might just have wrecked his high school life, Blaine – in this school, being gay's a stigma. People make you miserable for it. Sure, the bullying's less than it was, but people still judge you everywhere you go. Have you forgotten what your school was like before you went to Dalton?"

This hit Blaine hard. If he was honest, he had. He had tried so hard to forget about the unpleasant times that he hadn't realised what it might be like for Dave to be forced out at McKinley. He himself was always so open about his feelings that he didn't realise that other people didn't always find it so easy to do so.

He tried to apologise. "I'm… I'm sorry. I guess I just… I didn't think. I was so mad, about the whole idea of you and him. I didn't… I didn't stop to think about how what I said would… I didn't think you cared about him so much."

"How could I not, Blaine?" Kurt asked simply. "He's going through what I went through before I came out, only he has way more to lose. It's not that I like him so much as a person… there's too much hurt there. But he needs a friend. He needs someone to show him that being gay doesn't have to be the death sentence he always thought it was. And he needs someone be there, someone who he knows won't try to stick him in the dumpster if he ever does come out. So maybe I don't like him very much. But I sure as hell _care_ about him. And the fact that you don't, even a little bit – it makes me think that I never really knew you at all."

Blaine sighed. "You're such a good person, Kurt."

Kurt raised his eyebrows at him. "You seemed to forget that for a while there, with all the trashing my car and the blazered musical minions.."

"I'm so sorry, Kurt," Blaine said sincerely. "I didn't… I wasn't gonna wreck your car. I just wanted to do the song… but the guys were so indignant for me… they kinda talked me into it. I know I shouldn't have done. I am, really, so sorry."

"I know. But saying sorry to me isn't enough. You have to go and find Dave and tell him how sorry you are. Tell him how stupid you were to forget what it's like to come out in a school like this."

"I will. I'll do that now." Blaine moved to the door.

The gathered members of New Directions (which now included Artie, Brittany, Santana and Mike) shuffled quietly away from the door.  
>Blaine turned back as he laid his hand on the door handle.<p>

"So… are we okay now?"

Kurt looked at him in stunned disbelief.

"I'll pay for all the damage to your car, of course," Blaine hastily reassured him.

"Blaine, you got all your friends to do a song and dance about how I'm a cheater in front of the whole school, and you think I can forgive you just like that? I'm a good person, Blaine; I'm not a superhero."

"But I told you how sorry I was… you said you understood!" Blaine exclaimed, moving back towards Kurt.

"I said I understood why you were angry, Blaine. I don't understand why you acted like such a child about it."

"A chil-?"

"Blaine, I don't want to be your boyfriend anymore. I can't be with someone who thinks that that is a reasonable way to solve a disagreement."

"But Kurt! I said I was sorry!"

"You can't just say sorry and pretend it didn't happen, Blaine."

"What if I make it up to you? What if I got all the Warblers back again and we did a song about how sorry I was?"

Kurt lost his temper, yelling angrily, "Will you stop trying to solve every problem by either paying your way out of it or getting the Warblers to sing something? An acapella band is not an effective means of communication!"

Kurt sighed at the baffled and hurt look on Blaine's face.

"Blaine, I like musical numbers more than most guys. As a general rule, I adore them. But even I know that you have to _talk_ about problems. A grand gesture is a nice thing, but it doesn't make up for all the little things that aren't right."

He sighed again. "You just… you don't _get_ me, Blaine. I thought you did, but… I guess we're just similar. We like so many of the same things… but that doesn't make you right for me. You swept me off my feet for a while... maybe I've just got my feet on the ground again.  
>"I can't be with you, Blaine. I can't be someone who would be so petty. I can't be with someone who could ever forget what being gay means in a place like this.<p>

"Once you've found Dave and apologised to him, I don't want you to ever come back here."

Blaine stood mute, the expression on his face akin to that of a kicked puppy.

"Come on, Blaine. Go to find Dave. Tell him what you told me, tell him how sorry you are, then go back to Dalton."

Blaine looked suddenly worried. "I… um… do you think he'll hit me?"

Kurt pondered as he walked to the door (all the Glee members on the opposite side of it (bar Finn) scuttling hastily away).

"I don't _think_ he would. Not any more." Kurt paused. "I think... maybe I should come with you, just in case."

He opened the door and led Blaine into the corridor – now apparently empty apart from Finn.

Kurt turned to him. "Hey Finn. Do you know where Dave went?"

"I thought I saw him go to the bathroom…" Finn said, glaring daggers at Blaine.

"Blaine's going to apologise to him, then he's going to leave," Kurt explained to Finn.

Kurt's brother nodded. "Can I punch his face in?"

"Dave's?" Kurt exclaimed, warily.

Finn shook his head and then jerked it in Blaine's direction (who was trailing behind Kurt with a hangdog expression).

"No, Finn. You cannot punch my b-… my ex-boyfriend's face in," Kurt sighed, tripping over the words with a sad expression.

Grim satisfaction appeared on Finn's face as he nodded, glad at least that Kurt had broken up with Blaine (Finn had stuck to his word and consequently been the only member of New Directions who hadn't had his ear stuck to the door).

Kurt and Blaine entered the boys' bathroom. One cubicle was occupied, and the room was silent.

"Dave?" Kurt called into the tiled room.

A quiet, cracked voice came back, "Yeah?" It sounded as though he had probably been crying.

"Blaine has something he wants to say to you."

The cubicle door opened, and the hulking teen stared down at the cowering boy before him.

After a prod from Kurt, Blaine began his apology.

_Part 4 – Contrition_

After a moment of wavering, scared by the sheer size of the boy towering above him, Blaine composed himself. "I… um… I came to say I'm sorry."

"For what?" Dave asked gruffly, trying to hide the fact that he'd been crying.

"For saying... for saying you kissed Kurt. In front of everyone. I… I was selfish, and it was wrong of me. I shouldn't have let myself forget how scary things can be."

Dave looked down on him with a humourless smile around his lips. "You think you can just say sorry? You think you can make them all forget what you said with 'I'm sorry.'? Everyone heard what you said. _Everyone_. Yeah, Kurt tried to cover it up, but now that someone's said it? They're gonna cling onto it. The idea's gonna catch hold and I am going to live through hell. I know how these guys think. I know what they do. Hell, I was one of them.

"I am gonna be miserable for the rest of my time in this school and you think "I'm sorry" makes up for that?"

Blaine visibly wilted. "I don't know what else to say."

"Don't _say_ anything!" Dave yelled angrily, moving forward to stand directly in front of the curly-haired boy. "Just fuck off out of here! You won him, alright, isn't that enough for you?

Blaine was befuddled by the non-sequitur. "I… I won what? Is what enough?"

"Kurt! You've won Kurt! You've worked it all out with your boyfriend and you just came in here to rub it in!"

"I… what? No." Blaine stood resolutely still even as Dave loomed over him. "Kurt… Kurt broke up with me. He's just making sure I apologise properly. And I am, Dave, I'm truly sorry. I forgot that not everyone's lucky enough to go to school somewhere like Dalton. I forgot how hard it is before you accept yourself. I was wrong to forget all that, and I was wrong to try to out you like that.

"I… I would ask you forgive me, but I don't think you can do that right now, so I'm just gonna go. I _am_ sorry."

Blaine turned and walked away from the furious giant, nodding to Kurt before he exited the bathroom.

_Part 5 – Resolution_

Dave span around and planted his fist firmly into the cubicle wall. "Patronising son of a BITCH!" he yelled, letting out all of his anger and frustration onto the flimsy partition.

There was silence for a moment, then Kurt let out a sigh. "Yeah… he really kind of is."

Dave let out a humourless bark of laughter as he sat back down on the toilet lid. "You've finally figured that out?"

Kurt looked at him reproachfully. "I… I really cared about him. He… he loved me. And… and…" His lip wobbled as he tried not cry. "I just broke up with my first boyfriend, alright? I'm… I need a moment."

"You broke up with him."

Kurt took a deep breath, determined not to let the tears fall. "Yes, I did. What he did… someone who would do that is just not right for me. That doesn't mean it doesn't hurt to lose him. I liked… I liked having someone."

He didn't need to explain any further: Dave knew just how it felt to want to have someone, _anyone_, who would love you, and be there to catch you when you fall. How ardently Dave wished that he could be that someone for Kurt!

Kurt sniffed twice and, breathing deep, dabbing at his eyes with his handkerchief. He sighed. "Dave… the whole of Glee club is going to want to know what's been going on. They're my friends." He rested a hand on the seated jock's shoulder. "I won't tell them if you don't want me to, Dave. I can make up some bull and they'll probably believe it.

"But just think, Dave; this is an opportunity, Dave. You could go out there, to the whole school, and say, 'No, he wasn't cheating with me. But yes, I am gay.' You're a leader, Dave, they follow you. They turned on me because I was never cool to start with. But you, Dave – they voted you Prom King."

"Yeah, Kurt, but they voted you Prom _Queen_. They did that because you're gay, and out, and proud. That can't be me, I can't deal with that.  
>"However awesome you are, Kurt, they're gonna keep trying to find ways to drag you down. Because you're gay. I can't go out there and tell them that I'm the same. I can't, I just can't," Dave said desperately.<p>

"I know, I know," Kurt rubbed his shoulder, realising that no good would come of pushing him any further. The herd mentality was just too strong in this school, and Dave had never tried to go against the flow before. Kurt had been doing it all his life, he had always been an outsider. But for Dave, to break away from the herd would mean breaking away from the one safe haven he had always had.

Dave's next words seemed to fall out of his mouth in a jumble.

"Kurt, do you think…. he took a breath and started again. "Can I… would you…?" Dave stumbled over his words, trying to make a whole sentence from the hundreds of beginnings that were swirling through his head. "Do I have a chance? With you?"

Kurt was momentarily speechless. He supposed he should have seen this coming. "Dave, I…" he said with a distressed expression. "I don't…" he trailed off, unable to put his feelings into words, and still not wanting to hurt the jock.

Dave nodded, turning away to hide the sudden flood of tears to his eyes. "I screwed up. If I'd never done all that shit to you. It's my own stupid fault."

Kurt rested his hand on Dave's shoulder, nodding even though the taller boy was facing away and couldn't see him. "That's the thing, Dave. I can forgive… but I can't forget. And I can't feel that way for you. I don't think… even if you hadn't, even if we'd met some other time, some other place, that I would… we just wouldn't work. Maybe Blaine and I were too similar, but you and I… we're too different."

"Because you're out and proud and I'm a jock who jacks off to boys in the closet?" Dave said, with an embittered expression of self-loathing on his face. He looked up suddenly, realising what he'd said. "I don't mean- I don't jack off in the closet. I jack off to boys, and I'm in the closet."

A small snort of laughter escaped Kurt. "I know what you meant, and that's not it. You and I… it's just… not…" Kurt couldn't find the words to explain his utterly un-romantic feelings toward the jock.

"I could come out," Dave suggested hopefully. "I would come out right now if it meant I got to have you."

Kurt's heart seemed to break for a second time that day. He knew just what Dave was offering, what it meant to the bigger boy that he would do that just to win Kurt's affections. It was the most wonderful thing a person had ever offered to do for him, and he had to decline it.

"Dave, please don't off-. Please stop asking me to… I don't feel that way about you, and I'm relatively sure I never will." Kurt looking pleadingly at him, begging him with eyes. "I hate to hurt you, and I have to do it every time you ask me."

Dave nodded mutely, repressing the anguish he felt at Kurt's words.

With a weak smile, Kurt rested his hand on Dave' elbow, guiding him to his feet.

"Come on. Let's go and face the music."

Dave Karofsky, one-time terror of McKinley High, followed the dainty teen out of the door with all the meekness of a puppy.

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><p><strong>All reviews, whether praise or concrit, are very gratefully received!<strong>


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